KALAMAZOO, MI –Western Michigan University lobbyist Katie DeBoer John said there’s nothing lavish about the university spending $41,170 on lobbying state lawmakers in 2011.

And compared to what other universities are spending on having friends in the right places, one could agree.

Overall, Michigan public universities spent $2.1 million last year on lobbying lawmakers. The University of Michigan devoted the most to the task in 2011, listing $610,000 spent persuading federal lawmakers and $106,633 targeted at Lansing politicians -- a total of $716,663 for the year. Michigan State University spent $330,000 at the federal level and $117,346 in Lansing in 2011, according to the reports.

State public universities spent $2.2 million lobbying the federal and state government in 2011. State figures are posted on the Michigan Secretary of State website, and federal numbers are on Center for Responsive Politics site. The * means no report was listed for that university.

WMU stopped seeking federal government earmarks in 2008, when Congress told higher education lobbyists they would stop funding earmarked projects, said John. Plus, the state continued to cut higher education funding, making it difficult for university officials to justify spending dollars on federal government lobbying firms.

The Center for Responsive Politics reports that WMU did not spend any money lobbying in 2007 or 2008, but the national watchdog group reports WMU spent $117,814 in lobbying federal lawmakers in 2006.

Kalamazoo Valley Community College spent $18,700 on lobbying in the state last year, and has spent anywhere from $14,000 to $18,000 over the past five years, according to the Secretary of State.

“I think it’s necessary,” said John. “It’s beneficial to the university and in an era of term limits, you’re constantly informing new members, who are not familiar with our mission or projects. We’re wise fiscal managers and the amount we spent on lobbying isn’t lavish or out of line with what other institutions spend on that effort.”

John said much of her time in Lansing was spent informing lawmakers about WMU’s Seita Scholar program this year. The university received $750,000 from the Department of Human Services, separate from the $95.3 million in higher education appropriations, to support WMU’s Foster Youth and Higher Education initiative. The initiative provides tuition and board for qualifying students who are exiting the foster care system and has received national attention.

“With the exception of Rep. Sean McCann and Sen. Tonya Schuitmaker, who directly represent our area, no other legislator would be aware of that program and the benefits it provides to foster youth without a lobbyist there to bring it to their attention,” John said.

Over the past five years, WMU spent anywhere from $39,000 to $61,000 a year lobbying the state government, according to the Secretary of State.

John said the costs vary depending on the amount of time she and Greg Rosine, WMU’s vice president for government relations and a previous director at the Senate Fiscal Agency, spend on lobbying lawmakers. A percentage of both of their salaries equates to the $41,170, which includes $878.32 spent on food and beverages.

“We worked heavily with legislators this year for a long-term funding formula,” said John. “Sen. Schuitmaker would like to see something long-term, so (universities) know what goals they need.”

WMU President John M. Dunn and Schuitmaker, head of the Senate Higher Education Appropriations Subcommittee, have been vocal that the state needs to adopt a consistent higher education funding formula, but none have surfaced.

“I think the lobbyists play an important role in the era of term limits,” Schuitmaker said.

She said the $2 million that Michigan's 15 public universities spent on lobbying last year doesn’t sound unreasonable, considering the billions of dollars in higher education budgets. Schuitmaker said she especially wanted input from universities this year as lawmakers crafted a metrics-based budget linking state money to improved graduation rates and other goals.

Over the past two decades, lawmakers have offered several initiatives to establish a permanent funding policy, all of which fell flat, according to a memorandum published earlier this year by the Senate Fiscal Agency.

“You don’t see an instant reward, but in the long-term we think that is useful for the university and its mission,” said John. “It’s important to our local economy, the state economy and nationwide.”